Amir and Streeter are back with another myth-busting video for the BBM Challenge Council. This time the two tackle the myth that the BlackBerry browser is slow. Using the Browser Speed Modulator and some help from Dax Shepard, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is put through a series of browser tests. This video isn't my favorite of the bunch, but it's still pretty amusing. Check out the video above then hit the link below for more.
Here in the UK we saw RIM kick off their new marketing campaign just two weeks ago with a TV advert suggesting that "There are people who don't, and people who do" -- and that same concept is staying in place with two new, shorter commercials that have cropped up on BlackBerry UK's YouTube channel.
This time the adverts are targeting specific features and devices.
The first is promoting BBM Music on the BlackBerry Curve 9320, which is perfect timing as the device is now available on all UK networks. The second commercial features the BlackBerry Bold 9790 and its NFC payment capabilities. The last video focuses on the BlackBerry 7 web browser and the Bold 9900.
Although NFC has been around for a while now on BlackBerry Samrtphones it is one of those features that we don't really see in everyday use. Does this new advert mean NFC payments are going to be more readily available soon? Let's hope so as although the public may well need educating on the technology I strongly believe it is something we will see a lot more of in the near future.
It is also great that RIM are not sitting back, happy with their one TV commercial and are targeting the consumer from various angles.
Do you think they are on the right path? See the other videos below and then sound off in the comments!
Despite the fact the new BlackBerry 7 browser is leaps and bounds above previous versions, not everyone has a BlackBerry 7 device to make use of. Some folks out there may even have a BlackBerry 7 device and still want to use a different browser. Opera is aware of this fact and now -- they've made Opera Mini 6.5 available for download. In this release you'll find better data optimization which can help reduce data usage, when compared to other browser Opera uses only 10% of the data they use. If you're watching out for your data consumption, that's quite a bit. Thanks, Dennis!
More than a few people have emailed in asking for us to do a carrier speed comparison between the BlackBerry Bold 9900 running on AT&T and BlackBerry Bold 9930 running on Verizon. Since I have both in my arsenal at the moment, I figured, why not? As you can see I have pretty much full signal on both devices (Verizon was down a bar-ish) and turned Wifi off on both. So I'm running purely on the networks. The browser history, cache and all that stuff was cleared so it was a clean slate on both. I personally don't think there is too much of a difference between the two (or not enough to matter in the long run at least) but you be the judge.
CrackBerry member Maxxberry shared in the forums an awesome website for showing off the BlackBerry PlayBook's browser. The site is called We Choose the Moon and honors the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. It's chock full of flashy goodness, and really shows what the PlayBook is capable of on content-rich websites. Not only that, the site is really interesting! My daughter and I watched Apollo 11 launch into space, and spent quite a bit of time looking through the media, learning about the shuttle and mission - all on my PlayBook.
We Choose the Moon: Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Lunar Landing
Do you find yourself losing interest in the real world? Are there moments you long to be near a computer to view the latest sports scores or blog posts? Do you have the urge to look something up on Wikipedia because you need the answer now? Fret not; as the owner of a BlackBerry smartphone you can easily access the internet whenever and wherever you go. We're going to discuss how to use your BlackBerry browser so you'll never be more than a few inches away from your precious internet ever again.
Hailed ‘round the world as the savior of the BlackBerry web experience, the Webkit-based web browser found in OS6 is fast, sleek, and – most importantly – usable. The browser supports Javascript, CSS3, and HTML 5. What do all these letters mean? Basically, the OS6 web browser is very similar to the browser on your home computer. The web pages you see at home look about the same on your smartphone, just a little smaller.
Sure, you’ve probably used the browser quite a few times since finding it loaded on your device. But do you know all the ins and outs? How well do you really know your BlackBerry’s web browser?
I have been testing Home to Phone for the past couple weeks, and have to say it is one of the most useful BlackBerry applications I have come across. Like Android's Chrome to Phone, Home to Phone lets you share web pages to and from your BlackBerry device and desktop browser (Firefox plugin, Chrome beta, or Windows application).
Setting up Home to Phone is simple and easy. It can be done in about 5 minutes. After installing the BlackBerry Home to Phone application, you will need to install the Firefox plugin on your PC. Once both are installed, you will have to set a passcode for authorization on both the device, and the plugin.
Once you are all setup, the fun begins. Remember, Home to Phone allows you to share web pages from both PC to BlackBerry, and BlackBerry to PC. When sending a web page from your PC, the page automatically opens on your BlackBerry, and is almost instant. Another great feature is the ability to send phone numbers, which arrive in your inbox and are clickable, quickly connecting the call.
Overall, Home to Phone is one of the best BlackBerry applications I have used. I use it dozens of times per day and it works without any bugs whatsoever. Personally, throughout my busy day, there are countless situations where this comes in handy. The application is available on all BlackBerry models running OS 5 and up, but really shines on the new BlackBerry 6 webkit browser. You can pick it up at the CrackBerry App Store for the introductary price of $2.99.
I'm not sure how many of you all out there are Google Buzz users. Personally, I checked it out for about 20 mins when it was first released and then spent the next 2 hours trying to figure out how to disable it on my Google account. In any case, Google had promised that Google Buzz would be available on BlackBerry one way or another and now, we have support.
Although the support doesn't come via a dedicated BlackBerry app, users of Google Buzz will be pleased to know you can now point your browser to http://buzz.google.com and be served up an XHTML version right from within. From there, you can post and view all your Buzz content and if location services are enabled, you'll also be able to see who is buzzing around you in your area. Let us know in the comments how it works for ya, if you use Google Buzz that is.
Ever have that one great video on your device that you want to share with everyone? Your kid's cute moment, or maybe that time your buddy tried to be Tony Hawk and ended up looking more like something out of Jackass? You whip out your device and open your vids, only to find you have a long list of text entries because you were too lazy to rename the file. Now you have to search through, hunting for the right vid so you can show it off.
I got an email last week about a new application that aims to solve this problem. Titled simply "Good Video Browser", it's a simple application that does exactly what it's supposed to do, and does it well. Simply click the icon, and it will scan your device and media card for video files, displaying them as thumbnails rather than text. This makes it so much easier to find that exact file you want. The scanning is quick, and if you have a lot of vids, it can be paused and resumed later. The app remembers what has been scanned, and only scans when a new file has been added to the device.
Simple, straight-forward, and useful, this is yet another app that helps fill the gaps left in the OS, making an area most people just deal with a little easier to navigate. Available in the CrackBerry app store for all devices running 4.7 OS and up for $4.99. As a thank you to the CrackBerry community for their support, the developer has offered up 200 coupons of 50% off each. These are first come/first served, so get it while you can, using the coupon goodvideo. The coupon code will only work in the mobile app store or superstore client.
If you're already a user of Bitstream's Bolt Browser you should find this morning that it's advising you to go ahead and update to the latest release of 2.1. If you're new to Bolt, now may be the time to give it a test drive. Some new additions have been made to the overall application including updated Webkit installs server side for Bitstream to produce better rendering of webpages. Facebook enhancements have also been made as well, so now users can make use of Facebook chat right from within the browser. HTML5 support is onboard as well for such things as Youtube videos, along with a better tabbed browsing experience that has been there since 2.0. Some great changes indeed for those looking for a better browsing experience. Be sure to update or download the latest from the Bolt website direct from your BlackBerry device.
Following up on RIM's announcement of BES Express, demo of their WebKit browser and discussion on Super Apps yesterday in Barcelona at Mobile World Congress 2010, I had a chance to get some clarification and answers direct from RIM today. I haven't had a whole bunch of time to catch up on my RSS feeds and forum post reading since these stories broke, but from the little I have seen so far it seems there has been at least some confusion and questions (and even rumors) out there surrounding these topics.
I sat down with Rory O'Neill and Mike Kirkup of Research in Motion and in 18 minutes set the record straight and get some additional details as to what it all means for BlackBerry users. In case you missed our BlackBerry in Europe podcast back in November and don't know them yet, Rory is the Senior Director of Business Marketing in the EMEA region and Mike is the Director of Developer Relations. Huge thanks to them both for taking time out of their crazy schedule to talk to CrackBerry Nation.
Be sure to take a listen and let us know your thoughts in the comments. If you have any lingering questions that I missed and they didn't get addressed, let me know and I'll do my best to get the answers. Enjoy the show!
The announced but not yet released WebKit-based BlackBerry web browser was shown off via video demo twice today at Mobile World Congress. Mike Lazaridis, RIM's Co-Founder and Co-CEO, gave it a minute of glory during the morning's general session, while an hour later it was Mike Kirkup, RIM's Director of Developer Relations, who gave a quick walk through of what's in store for the browser at the BlackBerry Developer Day at App Planet to those in attendance (video above).
Some strange happenings on the Verizon front at the moment. The CrackBerry tips box is getting full of users who seem to be having their search engine options stripped from their web browsers, leaving Bing as the only choice for search engines to use. The CrackBerry forums and even the official Verizon forums all show signs of this happening, seemingly for no reason at this time. So, do you have all the regular options? Or is Bing the only choice you have on your device browser? Let us know if the comments.
A security advisory was released earlier this evening which alerted to a new Blackberry browser client-side denial of service vulnerability that effects various blackberry devices with the BlackBerry Device Software version 4.2 and prior.
This DoS is the result of the way the Blackberry browser handles certain excessively long URLs that can cause the device to slow down and possibly come to a screeching halt. This can only happen if you click on a link that has been crafted to exploit this vulnerability. If you have been effected a simple reset of the device (remove battery and reinsert) should get you back up and crackberrying once again!
Although the risk is relatively low you should probably upgrade to 4.2 Service Pack 1 if it is available from your carrier for your device.
Check out Blackberry Downloads for the latest software downloads that are available for your crackberry. If you are using your company's crackberry you may want to give a heads up to your crackberry administrator. While you are at it, be sure to mention crackberry.com!
This security vulnerability was first posted at FrSIRT.
If you are still waiting for an update from your carrier, you should at least be careful when following links that are within an e-mail message or on a website you do not trust.
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